HUDSON COUNTY -- Hudson County has been ravaged by some rough winter storms over the years, particularly in the winter of 1995-1996 (when Hoboken mayor Anthony Russo closed city streets to non-residents during a January storm), and 2010-2011. Would it have made it easier to get information on the storms if they had names? Names more specific than “The blizzard of ’96”?

The Weather Channel thinks so. They have decided to name certain winter storms this year, as they think it will help communicate important information about the storms to the public.

But Accuweather doesn’t think so.

Accuweather sent out a press release Wednesday saying: “A decision by The Weather Channel to name winter storms will create confusion, rather than delivering critical and important safety and planning information to the public. AccuWeather’s own examination of the issue over many years has found no benefit to users of weather forecasts by the initiative recently announced by The Weather Channel.

“ ‘In unilaterally deciding to name winter storms, The Weather Channel has confused media spin with science and public safety and is doing a disservice to the field of meteorology and public service,’ said Dr. Joel N. Myers, AccuWeather Founder and President. ‘ We have explored this issue for 20 years and have found that this is not good science and importantly will actually mislead the public. Winter storms are very different from hurricanes.’ “

The release notes: “Naming of hurricanes makes sense because they are well-defined storms following a path that can be tracked and predicted. Hurricanes have a life of many days and often weeks, move deliberately, and primarily affect a well-defined area of impact in all four quadrants. By contrast, winter storms are often erratic, affecting different areas unevenly. Winter storms often develop, dissipate, and reform with two to three centers, often delivering snow in only one quadrant, while places not too far away from a blizzard may experience rain or fog, or nothing at all. As a result, the public will not know what action to take when there is a “named” storm, or may take the wrong action.

“By contrast, some of the most severe winter events affect only limited areas, such as lake effect snow or freezing rain, which are not even associated with a predicted storm center. Under the Weather Channel system, these might not even be named, yet they can cause death and destruction.

“As a result, AccuWeather believes that naming winter storms by The Weather Channel will increase confusion in the public and the emergency management community.”

I would be inclined to agree with accuweather people in regard to winter storms. A thing as simple as elevation or storm track can significantly impact the degree of a winter storm. Secaucus might get 2 inches of snowfall and the Poconos 80 miles away 2 feet. A coastal storm might result in the opposite. It serves no benefit other than to satisfy the ego of some meteorologist at the weather channel. The big blizzard of 88 or whatever is good enough.